Lollapalooza 2013: Phoenix Closes the Festival with an Electric Show

Last night Lollapalooza performer and ELLE favorite, St. Lucia (a.k.a., Jean-Philip Grobler), shared a photo of Phoenix's electric performance with the following caption: "Finally saw @wearephoenix and they were only a zillion times better than I expected." We "liked" the photo as we couldn't agree more.

The headlining act closed out an awesome weekend of music with an epic show—It was rare to find anyone at the Bud Light main stage not dancing (though we did spot one elder couple serenely sitting on a blanket reading books).

The French rock outfit—comprised of Thomas Mars, Deck d'Arcy, Christian Mazzalai, and Laurent Brancowitz—know what they are doing.

They've been making music since the late '90s and have five albums under their belt (Bankrupt!, out in April 2103, was their latest release). With so many songs to choose from, we had to find out how they narrow it down, so we grabbed Mazzalai before their set to talk band drama, Sofia Coppola (Mars is married to the film director), and what they have in the works.

What went into the choices for today's set list?

We didn't do the set list [yet]. We will do it one hour before the show. That's our rule.

Where did that tradition come from?

We never argue, only about the set list. We do it at the latest moment possible so we can feel the vibe and base it off of how we are feeling during the day.

Are there any songs that you, personally, would like to perform today?

Yes. There is a song we do, a mash up of "Love Like a Sunset" and "Bankrupt!" which is totally instrumental. It's something we love to play, because there is a danger [to it]. It is a song that doest not really have a festival vibe, it is not a party song. It is more of an instrumental song—it goes very far. We love danger. We love vertigo.

What's your favorite festival to perform at?

It is between here and Summer Sonic in Japan. Here, the lineup is always very elaborative and clever. It's in the middle of a city with some of the best architecture in the world. The view is beautiful when you play. It makes this festival one of the top three in the world.

Who or what inspires you musically?

Everything. Our strategy in life is divided into two very drastic, different moments. The first is when you play a concert live. Every day you see a new city, a new country, and you discover the world. Your life is crazy, you have 10,000 lives in one month. Then, after two years we stop, we are very tired, and we do the total opposite way of living. We just close the door in our hometown of Paris, just the four of us in one small room, and we see no one for two years. The inspiration comes from the traveling all around the world and then for two years we deliver without thinking about it.

A Part of Hearst Digital Media
ELLE participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.